Re: RFS: kernelcheck

[Ben Pfaff <blp@cs.stanford.edu>]

Jan Hauke Rahm <info@jhr-online.de> writes:

> Practically, I do see problems in the US, too: do you think a US court
> would grant you copyright if the only statement in a file were "(C)
> 2009, cate"?

The copyright office has a webpage that explains some of these
issues at http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl101.html:

    A pseudonym or pen name may be used by an author of a
    copyrighted work. A work is pseudonymous if the author is
    identified on copies or phonorecords of that work by a
    fictitious name. Nicknames or other diminutive forms of one’s
    legal name are not considered fictitious. As is the case with
    other names, the pseudonym itself is not protected by
    copyright.

    If you are writing under a pseudonym but wish to be
    identified by your legal name in the records of the Copyright
    Office, you should give your legal name and your pseudonym
    when filling out your application. Check the box labeled
    “Pseudonymous” if the author is identified on copies of the
    work only under a fictitious name and if the work is not made
    for hire. Give the pseudonym on the associated line.

    If you are writing under a pseudonym but do not wish to have
    your identity revealed in the records of the Copyright
    Office, you should give your pseudonym and identify it as
    such. You may leave blank the space for the name of the
    author. If the author’s name is given, it will be made part
    of the online public records produced by the Copyright Office
    and will be accessible via the Internet. This information
    cannot be removed later from those public records. You must,
    however, identify the citizenship or domicile of the author.

    In no case should you omit the name of the copyright
    claimant. You may use a pseudonym in completing the claimant
    space, but you should also be aware that if a copyright is
    held under a fictitious name, business dealings involving
    that property may raise questions of ownership of the
    copyright property. You should consult an attorney for legal
    advice on these matters.

    If the author is identified in the records of the Copyright
    Office, the term of the copyright is the author’s life plus
    70 years. If the author is not identified in the records of
    the Copyright Office, the term of copyright is 95 years from
    publication of the work or 120 years from its creation,
    whichever term expires first. If the author’s identity is
    later revealed in the records of the Copyright Office, the
    copyright term then becomes the author’s life plus 70 years.
-- 
"Let others praise ancient times; I am glad I was born in these."
--Ovid (43 BC-18 AD)